One Pot Tomato Soup with Tortellini and Italian Sausage

Take your tomato soup to a whole new level by adding Italian sausage and cheesy 3 cheese tortellini! This recipe is an easy one to make and it only messes up one pot.  I love a meal that is an easy clean up.  I used a mild sausage but if you like it spicier use a spicier sausage, add red pepper flakes or some dashes of cayenne pepper.

At first I thought there weren't enough tortellini but once they puffed up after cooking the balance was better.  I would still almost use another 1/2 bag of them!   As the garden is coming into season, again, squash from the garden would be a nice addition to this soup.

One Pot Tomato Soup with Tortellini and Italian Sausage           Printable Recipe

1 pound Ground Mild Italian Sausage (If you can't get it ground, buy cased sausages and remove the casing)
1 small onion, shredded or finely diced
28 ounce can crushed tomatoes (or 2 pints home-canned diced tomatoes pureed*)
4 cups homemade chicken broth (or 2 - 14.5 oz cans)
10 basil leaves, sliced thin
1 Small Pkg (9 oz) Three Cheese Tortellini
Approx 2 cups fresh spinach
1 cup shredded Parmesan
salt and pepper to taste

One Pot Creamy Tomato and Basil Pasta

Lazy...and no desire or time for washing more than one pan when we are done with the meal.  That's a good way to describe me lately.  I threw what we liked together in a pot and this is what I came up with.  

I can see several substitutions and additions to this dish that would be just as wonderful. Some ideas I had were to substitute chicken broth for the water and using some chopped veggies  (like squashes) from the garden.

One Pot Creamy Tomato and Basil Pasta                                        Printable Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 medium onion, diced

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

14 leaves of fresh basil, sliced thin

2 dashes of cayenne pepper

3-1/2 cups water

9 ounces spaghetti (I used Jovial's Einkorn pasta but you could use GF too)

12 ounces grilled chicken, cut into chunks (optional)

1/2 cup whole milk (or cream)

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper as desired

Carl's Crazy Skillet Meal

My husband throws together some crazy concoctions.  They aren't always my favorite but my kids seem to like them. This one, though, I do!  Since he came up with the dish I'll give him the credit and name it after him. 

It's a pretty simple dish to throw together and until the ground beef is ready to be broken up the dish is hands off.   If you or your kids aren't big fans of chunky veggies, whack them up a little more before you cook them.   Feel free to change them up as well.  These are what we had on the hand the day he took over the stove top!

Carl's Crazy Skillet Meal                                                                            Printable Recipe

10-12 medium carrots, cleaned (peeled if needed) and cut into 1/4" slices
2 small onions, chopped
3 cups water
2 pounds ground beef

2 cups whole sweet corn (or 1 can drained)

salt and pepper to taste
Mayonnaise
Parmesan

Swedish Meatballs (with Gluten Free Options)

Recently we have been butchering our own hogs and so I've had ground pork on hand.  Right now it's quite a bit cheaper than ground beef so I am looking stretch the beef a little.  Nothing beats homemade meatballs smothered in a creamy gravy sauce.  It's even better if you make your own broth!

I cook the onions to mellow out their flavor and lose the crunch.  For me, a raw onion can ruin a dish in a hurry.  While you are at it, double or trip the batch and roll up some extra meatballs.  Throw them in the freezer for another time. 

Swedish Meatballs (with Gluten Free Options)                         Printable Recipe

Makes 18 meatballs

1-1/2 Tablespoons olive oil (divided)

1/2 small onion, grated

3/4 pound ground beef

3/4 pound ground pork

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

1 egg

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice (or 5 whole allspice)

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons butter

1/4 cup all purpose flour (or a gluten free flour of your choice)

3-1/2 cups beef broth (approx 2 cans or use homemade beef broth)

1/2 cup sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

Sweet Swine Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes are one of our favorite meals to eat.  We eat it on buns, on rice or scoop the meat up with chips.  It's your call on how you eat them! I have always made sloppy Joes with beef but this week I stepped out of the box and went with some local grown ground pork.  Then I threw in some pineapple.

I had a flashback to the first time I had ham and pineapple pizza.  I was dating my then boyfriend, now husband and he wanted ham and pineapple toppings.  Frankly, I thought he was nuts to put pineapple on his pizza but, hey, when your are in love, right?  So I tried it, it was pretty good.  It became my favorite way to eat pizza. That and spicy sausage and pepperoni is not a very good combo for dating breath!

Let's get to cooking!

Sweet Swine Sloppy Joes                                                                            Printable Recipe

1-1/2 pounds ground pork

1 small onion, finely chopped

8 ounce can tomato sauce

1/4 cup water

3 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 Tablespoon A1 sauce

Couple drops liquid smoke (optional)

8 ounce can pineapple tidbit, drained

salt and pepper

buns

Creamy Chicken and Rice

This dish is another one pot meal making for easy clean up.  Although, if you want to amp the flavor (and color) up a bit grill your chicken instead and then add to the cooked veggies.  The dish seemed a little lacking so I added carrots as an afterthought so you won't see them in my step by step photos.

Creamy Chicken and Rice                                                                 Printable Recipe

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1-1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1" hunks
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup white wine (optional)
1 cup instant brown rice*
3/4 cup shredded Parmesan
Few pinches dry parsley (or 1/4 cup chopped parsley)
Salt and pepper (as needed)

Mexican Chorizo, Rice and Bean Skillet

This dish is full of flavor and just the right amount of spice for our family.  If you are an adventurous one you can add cayenne, chilies in adobo sauce and/or sprinkle jalapenos on top to kick it up.  This skillet meal can be made in less than 30 mins so it is on the table quickly and it only uses one pan so there is a smaller mess to clean when the meal is done.   I had plenty for the family to eat and some for leftovers for lunches so I packed them up and tossed them in the freezer.

Mexican Chorizo, Rice and Bean Skillet                                      Printable Recipe

7 ounce tube Mexican Chorizo

14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

3/4 cup uncooked instant brown rice

1 cup water (more or less as needed*)

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 cups sweet corn

15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup Mexi blend cheese, Chihuahua or even mozzarella would work

Small handful of chopped cilantro

Sour cream

Southwestern Chicken and Rice

Southwestern Chicken and Rice

olive oil

2/3 cup diced red pepper

2/3 cup diced green pepper

2/3 cup diced onion

1-1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts (can use boneless thighs) cut into 1 inch pieces

1-1/2 teaspoons taco seasoning

1 cup instant brown rice*

1 cup salsa

1-3/4 cups chicken broth

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

3/4-1 cup whole corn, drained

2 cups shredded Mexi-blend cheese, cheddar, Chihuahua cheese

Drizzle some olive oil in the bottom of skillet.  Cook veggies until almost done.